The United States Military Academy at West Point urges candidates to start young. But when is the preparation early enough? You wouldn’t want to get a late start and put yourself at a disadvantage in the eyes of the Admissions office. But, then again, we don’t want you to fanatically obsess about getting into West Point and start a rigorous workout plan while you’re a 6th grader, but initiating that goal at a very early age helps.

You should plan out your preparation for a service academy before your high school years. Two important aspects that need to be considered before high school are academics and extra-curricular activities. Most high schools give you the power to customize the types of courses and the levels of difficulty for each, and West Point has course requirements that they’re looking for in a candidate. Most of these course requirements are pretty standard, but there is always that chance that you may leave something out so follow this guideline.

• 4 years of English
• 4 years of math. USMA says that you need algebra, geometry, algebra II and trigonometry. But you should try to take up to at least calculus I so that you won’t struggle with that class during your plebe year.
• 2 years of lab science. Again, try to learn and retain as many concepts in chemistry because you will be revisiting it during your plebe year.
• 1 year of US history.

The above are the bare minimum requirements. To make yourself a well-rounded candidate, take some useful electives like a few years of a foreign language and some subjects within social sciences (e.g. just don’t waste your time with b.s. classes like film studies). Also, show that you are ready for the academic challenges at West Point by always taking the most difficult offering of a course; take either Advanced Placement or Honors versions of classes whenever you have that option.

Next, another important factor of admission is how active you are in extra-curricular activities. Fill up your resume with sports and clubs in each year of high school. And make sure you have something to do for each season. For example, play football or field hockey in the fall, followed by math club in the winter, and then run track in the spring.

Even though it may seem difficult to juggle AP classes, sports and clubs all at the same time, West Point Admissions wants to see that you have advanced time management skills. At first it will be difficult, but as you learn to allocate time for each activity, you will further prepare yourself for the even more rigorous schedule at the Academy. Did you know that, during your academic year at USMA, you get 6 hours’ worth of homework each night with only 3 hours to complete it? Yes, this is another form of a shit test.

Another important aspect of extra-curricular activities is that you need to demonstrate your abilities as a leader. Why are you going to the Military Academy instead of enlisting as a grunt? The answer is because you have the potential and ability to lead your fellow soldiers and make wise decisions in a group environment. So strive to be team captain in your sports and run for president/vice president in your clubs. Not only does this look good on your application, but you learn essential skills to succeed as a leader.

Finally, if you don’t already think that you are a leader, you must believe in yourself as a leader. The famous novelist Kurt Vonnegut said, “We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful what we pretend to be.” So make this philosophy work for you and — if you are not a leader already — make yourself believe you are leader by acting like one.

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